These are all feelings, thoughts, and concerns someone experiencing cognitive decline and their family may experience.

Therapy, marital/caregiver support, and family counseling can be very important in successful treatment of memory loss and/or cognitive decline. Cognitive decline can be associated with work performance changes, interpersonal difficulties, problems performing certain daily tasks and household responsibilities, family and parental stress, marital stress, and personality change. Counseling can help to decrease depression and anxiety, provide support, bolster self-confidence, and address behavioral problems. In therapy, skills are taught and practiced to manage stress and anger, improve communication, and resolve conflicts. Therapy can also help to reduce marital conflict and enhance the happiness and relationships of everyone in the family.

Did you know?…Positive attitude actually improves memory and cognitive functioning. Psychotherapy can help develop and maintain a more positive attitude and outlook regarding yourself, your future, and your current difficulties.

It is our philosophy to capitalize on strengths and to deal with, even mitigate, weaknesses.

Neuropsychological assessment is one way of measuring how a person’s brain is working. It consists of a variety of different tasks, each of which measures a specific area of cognitive or intellectual functioning. The neuropsychologist can use the results of these tests to better understand how a person is processing information and learning. The tests will delineate which thinking skills are strong and which are weak. Armed with this new knowledge, a neuropsychologist can better answer why a person is not succeeding at home, socially, or at work. From this new understanding, an individualized treatment plan can be developed to help overcome current challenges and difficulties.

Areas of cognitive functioning evaluated include: Attention/concentration, visual and auditory memory and learning, reasoning and problem-solving, visuospatial organization/visual-motor coordination, receptive and expressive language abilities, and planning and organizational skills. IQ tests and psychoeducational testing may be included as well. The neuropsychological tests usually involve paper-and-pencil tasks, answering questions, manipulating objects, and computerized tasks which are administered by a specially trained technician.

In addition, the neuropsychological assessment also includes psychological testing that is utilized to assess behavioral, personality and mood-related symptoms, and coping abilities. These tests typically involve completing a checklist of symptoms and/or true-false-type questionnaires.

Upon completion of the neuropsychological evaluation, a clinical neuropsychologist makes recommendations regarding diagnoses, relevant treatment interventions, and any other necessary referrals.

Click here for a detailed explanation of the who, what, and why of neuropsychological testing. Please give our office a call at 732-840-5266 to speak with a technician or to schedule an appointment for a consultation.